THE INCREASE: Matt Manzari - An Unfair God

(Photo Courtesy: Garrett Cortese)

We serve an unfair God.

Hold on — before you discard anything else I’m about to say, let me explain. In a fair world, things happen in cause and effect. If you touch a hot stove, your hand will burn. You’re most likely not going to blame God for that one, that was all your doing. You expect to be burned in this situation. It’s not His fault, it’s yours. In a fair world, what should happen does happen.

What is fairness? The Bible says, “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). In a fair world, if we got what we deserved, we wouldn’t be living the life we’ve been given. But God. Because of God, we experience His grace and salvation despite what our sinful selves deserve.

Why is it that I survived when the best doctors in Central Florida — at the only Level I trauma center — who are barely ever wrong, said, “Not if, but when your kidneys fail…” They were sure I had brain damage. They were sure I had heart damage. They were sure my arms were coming off. They were sure they were keeping me comfortable until I died.

Why were the best doctors wrong again and again? Because we serve an unfair God who, for unmerited reason, steps into this world and says, “This is still My world, these are still My people, and I have the last say.”

This is the God we serve. One who has given us everything through His Word — all the tools we need — to lay our challenges at the cross. And at the end, He brings full restoration to everything.

Thank goodness we don’t serve a fair God!

I’m often asked to speak at these big churches and leadership conferences and it’s so overwhelming. Who am I? I’m just a kid who loved to do a sport — one nobody knows about — and then I got electrocuted. Now I’m being asked to speak to these leaders and titans in these industries. I know I should be learning from them, not them from me. It’s been a process of learning to say, “God, I can’t but You can. I’m just going to tell these people what You’ve done in my life. I just hope I can reach one.”

It’s a really humbling experience. I don’t know what I’m doing; I don’t know how to run a ministry. But I do know we serve an incredible God who has done some incredible things in my life, and I want to share that with the world.

Even when I think I’ve led a pretty bold, crazy lifestyle as an action sport athlete, it takes more guts to be bold and go for it in my faith walk. We need to take these leaps of faith to say, “OK God, I can’t but You can. I just need to trust You.”

— Matt Manzari, professional wakeskater and motivational speaker

The Increase, part of the Sports Spectrum Network, is a community of Christian pro athletes sharing their personal stories of the decrease of self and the increase of Christ (John 3:30). Visit TheIncrease.com for more stories and videos.

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